Expandable implant with expander

1. An apparatus comprising:

an expandable implant for use in the human body, said implant having a leading end, a trailing end, a length between said leading and trailing ends, moveable portions, an interior, and a mid-longitudinal axis extending along the length of said implant and passing through the center of said implant and said leading and trailing ends; and

an expander for moving apart said moveable portions of said implant, said expander including:

a front surface oriented toward said leading end in one direction along the mid-longitudinal axis, a rear surface oriented toward said trailing end in the opposite direction along the mid-longitudinal axis, an upper surface, a lower surface, and side surfaces, said side surfaces intersecting said upper and said lower surfaces at a pair of diametrically opposed corners and a pair of diametrically opposed arcs;

a first distance measured across said front surface between said upper and lower surfaces, a second distance measured across said front surface between said side surfaces, and a third distance measured across said front surface between said opposed arcs, said first distance being greater than said second distance; and

an axis of rotation about which said expander is rotatable so that said expander moves apart the moveable portions of said implant when said opposed arcs are rotated against the moveable portions of said implant, the axis being perpendicular to a plane, wherein said plane includes said first and second distances, and said plane extends through said upper, lower, and side surfaces.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said third distance generally approximates said first distance.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said third distance is greater than said first distance.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said third distance is less than said first distance.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a fourth distance measured across said front surface between said opposed corners, said fourth distance being greater than said third distance.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said expander includes a thickness measured in a direction parallel to the axis of rotation of said expander, between said front and rear surfaces of said expander, said thickness being less than said first distance.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said expander includes a thickness measured in a direction parallel to the axis of rotation of said expander, between said front and rear surfaces of said expander, said thickness being less than said second distance.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said expander has an outer perimeter adapted to contact a portion of said implant, said outer perimeter being non-threaded.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said upper and lower surfaces are generally parallel to one another.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said side surfaces and said upper and lower surfaces are oriented to substantially form a parallelogram.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said two diametrically opposed arcs are each of the same radius.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said two diametrically opposed arcs are arcs of the same circle.

13. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said two diametrically opposed corners each form a 90-degree angle.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said expander has a fixed shape during movement from an initial insertion position to a final deployed position within said implant.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said expander includes an opening adapted to cooperatively engage a tool used to move said expander from an initial position to a final position to increase the height of said implant.

16. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein said opening is non-threaded.

17. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein said opening is coaxial with the axis of rotation.

18. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein said opening is offset from the axis of rotation.

19. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said expander has an outer perimeter, the outer perimeter including at least one removed portion for engaging a tool used to move said expander from an initial position to a final position to increase the height of said implant.

20. The apparatus of claim 19 , wherein said removed portion is concavedly-shaped.

21. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said moveable portions include at least one opening in communication with said interior of said implant to permit bone growth through said implant.

22. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said implant has a depth between said leading and trailing ends, said expander having a thickness measured in a direction parallel to the axis of rotation of said expander, between said front and rear surfaces of said expander, said thickness being less than half the depth of said implant.

23. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said implant has a width perpendicular to the mid-longitudinal axis of said implant, said second distance being approximately one-half the width of said implant.

24. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said expander is adapted to rotate in a plane perpendicular to the mid-longitudinal axis of said implant.

25. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said expander is adapted to remain in a fixed location along the mid-longitudinal axis while transitioning said implant from an unexpanded position to an expanded position.

26. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said moveable portions of said implant comprise:

an upper member having a portion being at least in part arcuate adapted for contact with an adjacent bone portion; and

a lower member having a portion being at least in part arcuate adapted for contact with an adjacent bone portion, at least a portion of said upper and lower members being moveable relative to one another.

27. The apparatus of claim 26 , wherein said expander is adapted to slide along at least a portion of at least one of said upper and lower members.

28. The apparatus of claim 26 , wherein said arcuate portions of said upper and lower members are arcs of the same circle.

29. The apparatus of claim 26 , wherein said upper and lower members each have a length, the entire length of said upper and lower members being movable relative to the mid-longitudinal axis.

30. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said implant is adapted for insertion at least in part between two adjacent vertebral bodies of the spine.

31. The apparatus of claim 30 , wherein said moveable portions of said implant comprise:

an upper member having a portion being at least in part arcuate adapted for placement toward and at least in part within one of the adjacent vertebral bodies; and

a lower member having a portion being at least in part arcuate adapted for placement toward and at least in part within the other of the adjacent vertebral bodies, at least a portion of said upper and lower members being moveable relative to one another.